Last summer, my husband Gerald and I did an episode on the blessing of downsizing, and now, a year later, I want to give you an update. When we started downsizing, there was a lot of struggle, a lot to figure out, but one of the things that kept us going was knowing there was something purposeful about downsizing. For those of you who are new to Redefining Wealth, Welcome! Redefining Wealth is a community that recognizes wealth is so much more than money and material possessions. In this episode, we’re going to give a quick summary of where we were last year and then dive into where we are now and what lessons we’ve learned along our downsizing journey. This episode is brought to you by our complimentary Purpose Chasers community. Want to share your aha moments with a group of like-minded purpose chasers from all over the world? Visit iamapurposechaser.com and join NOW. Summer 2018 This time last year, we were in the middle of downsizing. My husband, daughter and I were living in Southern California in a 6,000 plus square foot house and not occupying half of it. There was so much of the house we weren’t using, yet we were still paying to clean and maintain – it didn’t make sense. So, as a family, we went through a voluntary downsize. “Our goal was to cut our expenses by 60% and then reinvest the money into things that mattered to us.” Logically, we knew downsizing was the best thing we could do, but once we started packing and moving, there were a lot of emotions that affected all of us.  During this I remember Gerald said, “We’re not decluttering. We’re detoxing.” That was like a lightbulb moment because decluttering is one thing, but detoxing can be very uncomfortable. For us, we had to stick with it even though it was uncomfortable and painful. I compare our detoxing to a season of pruning. It’s a season where you’re removing the things that no longer serve you. And with pruning, there’s a purpose to doing it – to help you (or a tree) grow stronger. And so, that’s what we did. We went through this voluntary pruning and while the last 12 months have been painful at times, they have also been purposeful. Here’s a bit of what’s changed for us personally and professionally: We were able to purchase two apartment buildings here in Georgia We started a transportation company and bought our first 18-wheeler We bought a home in a wonderful neighborhood (also, shout out to Egypt Sherrod [https://www.instagram.com/egyptsherrod/] who was our realtor and helped us find our incredible home) I was able to bring on new team members for my business I launched my Mastery + Momentum Mastermind, the Purpose to Platform, and the Purpose Chasers Community Redefining Wealth has almost reached a million downloads Gerald finished his book, Don’t Just Start a Business, Build an Empire  I believe these things couldn’t have happened if we allowed ourselves to continue to hold onto dead weight. In other words, if we’d continued to wrap our arms around those things that looked good from the outside, but didn’t feel good on the inside, then we would not be in the place we are now. And regardless of where we are now, I want you to know that every transition and transaction comes with work. There will be painful moments. There will be uncomfortable moments. But the key is in remembering why you’re doing it. Summer 2019 – 12 Months Later When we started 2019, our word for the year was “release.” Without even knowing all the releasing that was going to happen to us. We’ve released relationships, conversations and material things. “It’s been a learning process. I’ve learned more from these unforeseen scenarios than I have from any book.” – Gerald For Gerald, working through the process of downsizing and releasing has been tough at times. And it’s challenged his faith. We went through a lot moving from a 6,000 plus square foot house to an apartment, then to a hotel room and finally to a house again.  All the trials an